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PowerBook G4 or iMac G5 for FinalCut

R

riwanami

macrumors member
Original poster
I recently had to return a 15inch PowerBook I had been using to my sister who returned from a year-long trip abroad. I've been using it mainly to video edit on Final Cut Express, and synch itunes with the iPod, in addition to word processing and email/internet.

The problem with Final Cut was that it took forever to render videos. I once used a PowerMac G4 Dual 1.25Ghz, and the rendering was much much faster. Right now, I can't afford a PowerMac G5, but needing something to replace my sister's PowerBook, should I get the new PowerBook G4s or should I get something like a 20inch iMac G5? . Thanks!
 
If editing video is your main concern and mobility is not absolutely necessary then there is no reason to get the Powerbook.


Lethal
 
LethalWolfe said:
If editing video is your main concern and mobility is not absolutely necessary then there is no reason to get the Powerbook.


Lethal
Click to expand...
I agree, if all you are going to do is just have a computer in one place get the iMac G5. Your rendering times will be much better than on a much slower system. I see you are talking about a 20" monitor. This will be a good size to edit video -- a lot better than a smaller laptop screen. Unless you travel frequently and need a computer don't buy the laptop, instead get the desktop.
 
Go for the iMac
Faster cpu and it is 64Bit (Tiger)
Faster HDD with SATA
The screen is lager (PB max 17)
 
Thanks everyone. My only complaint about editing on the PowerBook G4 was the rendering times, which seemed to take forever. I'll probably go for the iMac G5 once Tiger comes out.
 
Some thoughts:

- Video editing is really nice on two screens, but the iMac supports this only with a hack (see here), PowerBook is out-of-the-box
- iMac has much faster 3,5" S-ATA Harddisk
- Get as much RAM as you can afford (helps overall system speed and rendering)
- PB has FW800 (for those really fast external drives)

Also, there might be a new Version of Final Cut around the corner when Tiger finally ships (Final Cut is the oldest of Apples "Pro"/"Express" applications) -- and this version will surely be highly optimized for the G5.

So, get the iMac and have fun.
 
Depends on your needs

This laptop is plenty fast for me renders really quick ( see sig.) but if there is no need to be able to go places with the computer I would have gone with the 20" iMac. The iMac will be faster because of the higher clocked processor and the faster FSB and it has a 160GB hdd, but I needed something for school and something I could take to work and could do my Final Cut and games ( lol i have an easy job).
 
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